


Ironclad

by Jevil_Joss



Series: World of Heroes [2]
Category: Original Work
Genre: mild violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-08-18
Updated: 2019-08-18
Packaged: 2020-09-01 06:08:28
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,105
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20253409
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jevil_Joss/pseuds/Jevil_Joss
Summary: The Incredible Ant starts tracking down a criminal organization.





	Ironclad

**Author's Note:**

> This is not done yet. Please read Resolution for an introduction to the characters.

"Ha ha ha ha!" Professor Question laughed as he strode outside. "Those fools! Putting all their high tech machinery, gadgets, and stuff in an unprotected bunker in the woods! It was almost too easy!"

"The only thing that's 'too easy' for you is sitting on your ass," Razor Blade stated simply. She wore a tight-fitting black leather body suit, which had blades strapped all over it--her sides, her legs, her waist, her shins, even one tucked behind her neck in between her shoulder blades. 

"Roasted!" Laughinstock chortled. He wore a purple tuxedo and tie, and, unfortunately, pulled off the look. 

"Urk." Question flinched, then glared at her. "Regardless of my henchmen's questionable judgement, I have pulled off perhaps one of the greatest heists of the century!"

"While probably not the greatest," an unfamiliar voice said, "it certainly is the first." Jumping out of the trees, black jacket fluttering, the Incredible Ant performed a flawless power landing in the path right in front of them. 

"This should get interesting," Silver commented. "I haven't seen Johnny in combat yet."

Cyclone leaned forward in her chair. "This should provide us with some info. Maybe we can find out why he alone survived the serum, and eventually how he even got the powers."

Silver tapped his fingers against the arm of his chair. "Hmm."

"Ah, the Incredible Ant." He wore a bright green shirt and pants, wielding a staff with the top shaped like a question mark. "Unfortunately for you, you have met your end, for I am...Professor Question! Class B Mercenary for hire! I couldn't care less if I was being paid to commit murder or petty theft as long as I get paid! I have taken down dozens of heroes! You fool! Ah-ha-ha-ha!"

Ant rose, dusting off his jacket. "Sorry, never heard of you."

There was a stunned silence. "N-never?" 

"No, not really. Also, Class B, you said?"

"Yeah?"

"Oh, this'll be easy. Face Crusher was a Class A threat." Underneath his carapace, Ant grinned. 

Question's jaw dropped. Staring for a solid thirty seconds, he finally barked, "Get that snotty punk and teach him a lesson!"

Razor Blade leapt off to the side, throwing knives at Ant. Ant tried to dodge, but the first knife hit him square between his insectoid eyes. "Fool! Her power increases her aim and hand-to-eye coordination by a factor of ten! You can never dodge her knives!"

Ant picked the now blade-less knife off the ground. "Thanks for telling me her power set. Also, you do realize I am both knife and bullet proof?"

"Dammit!" Razor Blade cursed loudly. 

Laughingstock leapt forward and threw a playing card. "Aha! But Laughingstock's power makes anything he throws move twenty times faster and hit ten times harder!"

The card bounced off his carapace. 

"AAAAAAAAH! WHAT THE HELL?" Laughingstock screamed. 

"I will not be taken down by anyone wearing purple," Ant said idly. 

"That's odd." Cyclone leaned forward. "His carapace shouldn't be that hard. The only other one who had carapace that hard was..."

"Let's see what happens now," Silver replied. 

"Whatever!" Question clenched his hand into a fist. With enough concentrated fire power, the three of us can take you down!"

"Where do you keep getting these numbers?" Ant asked. "Twenty times faster, ten times harder, three people? I only see one person trying to fight me here."

"Eh?" Question finally noticed Laughingstock and Razor Blade running away as fast as possible. "COWARDS!"

"So, you surrendering now?" Ant asked. 

"Grrr...I guess I'll have to take you down myself," he snarled. He charged, swinging his staff at Ant. "My power increases the density of anything I hold by a factor of--"

Ant caught the staff and snapped it with his bare hands. "Oh, for crying out loud! I doubt any of those numbers are accurate! Besides, your power clearly increases weight. If it increased density, your staff would have shrunk."

Question stumbled backwards, holding the broken staff. "No...not possible..." He looked up at Ant, then behind him. "You!"

And dodged out of the way of a stream of fire that went right through where he'd been. Question, however, was not as fast. Flesh turned to charcoal and bone turned to ash, and the headless corpse fell to the ground, smoking. Ant looked from the corpse to the newcomer, who put a metal leg, with a glowing red ring on the bottom, back onto the ground. "You're welcome," he said. The newcomer wore a trench coat that dragged along the ground and black jeans with only one leg. He had a youthful, grinning, and oh-so punch-able face. He also had blonde hair, and his t-shirt simply read, "I'm better than you and I know it."

Needless to say, Ant hated him immediately. 

"You killed him," Ant said flatly. 

"He was scum of the earth, and didn't know anything I didn't know," the stranger said, dragging out the syllables. "Name's Pyro."

"This is bad," Cyclone said. "Snapdragon said he'd had that situation under control. What the hell is Pyro doing here?"

"Enough." Silver rose to his feet. "This is a situation that has been allowed to exist for too long."

"And what exactly do you know?" Ant demanded, taking a fighting stance. 

"I am not your enemy, Schreid." He rolled his eyes. "But I do not happen to think of you as a friend." Pyro closed his eyes for a long moment. He opened them, and a black shell grew over his skin. Ant's power. 

He had never figured out where it came from--he hadn't been born with it. His "innate" power made him more resilient and harder to kill. But the carapace--the speed, the strength...

"Who are you?" he demanded. "You know my name, presumably cause you read the paper, so I don't feel the need to introduce myself. But who are _you_?" 

Pyro chuckled. "No one knows or cares about my old name. For now, suffice it to know that we have a mutual enemy." He nodded to the headless corpse. "That moron and the two who escaped--with the goods, I might add--work for Project Ironclad. I worked there for a time, but...ah, well. I'l tell you later."

"I'd prefer it if you tell me now."

Pyro cocked his head. "No. Not a chance."

"Why?" 

He grinned. "Less fun that way." He poked a button on his watch, which appeared to be solid gold, and disappeared in a silver burst of light. 

Ant stood straight. "I really don't like that guy." He looked at the corpse, then pulled out his phone. "Yeah, James? We have a problem."


End file.
